Howie58

Greetings: Homer's chutzpah is well....loaded to the max. it is a remarkable offer, even if it doesn't pan out. 1) Four firsts...basically says he likes the core and will go elsewhere for need. 2) The upfront bonuses say the checks keep coming from Snider and Comcast 3) What we really seem to say is "Poile and Trotz, you are our development franchise. Build 'em good, and then we will raid you when they becoming high priced after development." What can we say? Best, Howie

Dear Oz: It's nice to hear from the "old timers" on Philly.com. I hope all is well on the other side of the world. Your winemaker, Jacobs Creek, is blitzing the airwaves on a cable station. Very cost-effective stuff! The world is indebted to your country for Shiraz. You rationale is good. I suspect Homer didn't want to shell out more than a million for a backup. My first choice would have been Clemmenson but the Panthers resigned him. Hedberg stayed with Jersey. I suspect Leighton will not be a total loss. Our organization's lack of goaltending development comes through loud and clear on this issue. Peace, Howie

Greetings: I think there is some truth to this piece. Sometimes addition by subtraction works. I like the fact we preserved the core. Carle at 5.5 million seems a bit overdone. I don't think JVR would pan out and Yagr played his one year of mentoring. So, this piece is OK...but the bit on Leighton..agreed there is some overkill. But I also think some here only remember the bizarre final goal but forget Leighton's work getting us into the playoffs. Best, Howie

Howdy: He got two years at 800K I think. So Homer must see something. His career has not been with A tier squads. He has to be on par with Lilja..maybe a significant upgrade. I like Fedotenko. This is an okay pair of moves. Best, Howie

Bak: I agree with you and the gang. This allows cap space and preservation of the young can ore. Best, Howie

Doom: Agreed, but in the grand scheme, we would have more than one "educable" prospect. Howie

Well Sheldon Souray gets 11 million from the West...shoot, if that is the case, Carle is worth 6 http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=399732

Greetings: The "real" problem isn't Leighton. The pickings are slim. The problem is an "organeyezhation" that doesn't develop goalies. Leighton commented on how happy he is to be working with Jeff Reiss again. Shoot...why isn't there a young prospect Reiss is grooming for backup? Peace, Howie

Alaska: I hope you are right. One thing for sure; we seem to be a favorite trading partner of Scott Howson. Shoot, you'd think he would learn that the Homermeister is going to probably fleece him. Best, Howie

On paper our D is pretty good. In practice, the 10 bagger Pitt put up against us might say otherwise, and for a Flyers team to be 20 in the league in GAA...strange. That said, 600K goes a long way towards paying for a backup, so even if there is some payout, there was a method to doing this. Howie

Greetings: I posted elsewhere and repeat here that for goaltending, I have to think we might be a "suspect" location. We don't seem to develop them and the track record of "imports" other than Parent/Favell (Boston farm system, I think) isn't inspiring. For other positions, I think we would be an excellent home. Best, Howie

I was reading and noted that the guy did not play one game with us in 11-12. So I suspect Bourdon is the anointed seventh man. Bartulis had his chances. I guess the brass saw more upside elsewhere. One commentary on him on Yahoo questioned character/grit. Peace, Howie

JK: Thank you for posting this. I think someone will pick up a fairly good AHLer and occasional seventh D. Best, Howie

Sammi: Good to hear from you and hope all is well. Wolski started well with the Panthers but dropped off. Garrison is sort of a surprise...thought the guy had potential. You know more than me....many wondered why Tallon paid a declining Jovo millions and dumped this guy. Peace, Howie

Good Morning: My neighborhood Panthers are not offering Wolksi and Garrison contracts. http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/players/3658 Wolksi has some good offensive skills. Former first rounder. At 4 million, no dice. But for less than half the guy could help us on the shoot-out. Garrison...sort of a surprise to me...has a cannon shot. Peace, Howie

BOI: Howdy and I hope you are well. I believe a move for a top 4 defender can't be ruled out. Granted, Schenn's addition makes that less likely but I think Homer wants to build the D. I think the question is with Carle resigning? If that happens the D need drops. If not, I smell a trade. Best, Howie

Van: Good to hear from you; had some Cab earlier tonight. No, I stand corrected and meant goal. Sorry for my unclear reference. If I could send you some good stuff, electronically, I would. Actually, I just ordered some wine from a place called "Wine Insiders" that was good and very fairly priced....my first mail order of wine, something that was illegal until a few years ago and still not allowed in many states. Homer finds comfort in former players. So I might prefer Clemmenson it would not surprise me to find Biron here. Nitty might be too much of a stretch. Best, Howie

Podein: I hope you are right. The big picture tell me that we are facing a redo of the defense. It may take some time to gel. Howie

Jammer: Glad we have a set of ears/eyes in Toronto. I think this is a good trade for the players involved; it allows for the proverbial "reset" of their careers. And I wish both well. My fear is that Schenn will have a lot of pressure on him as part of a rebuilt defense. But I wonder if the rebuild will work with Lavy's coaching style. Peace, Howard

Poulin: Nice hearing from you. I have flown into YYZ a few times; last girlfriend's hometown. I give at least a 50/50 shot he hits 35 goals up there. But I think this is a good trade. We need help on D and having the Schenns together might help both improve their game with mutual support. Best, Howie P.S. I haven't flow into ROC for over 30 years..my grandmother lived there. But your comment brought back good memories.

I wouldn't be overjoyed at Leighton coming back. But if this is what happens, it happens. Let's face it, he is not the sole reason we lost two years ago. And fast forward to our 10 goal blow-out with Pittsburgh a few months ago. What's sad is that our organization just can't seem to develop people..even backups. If I were a young player, the O and B would not be high on my list of NHL squads. We seem to grind them out or trade them too soon. Peace, Howie

Howdy: I don't think we miss him. Schenn helps us more than an oft-injured JVR. The salary savings goes toward a backup goalie. I won't say he was a bust but it's clear JVR did not meet expectations. Frankly, I think Burke must have felt that Schenn was disgruntled in YYZ. Peace, Howie

Greetings: I am beginning to wonder if the Flyers Brain Trust sees the draft as more of a crap shoot and stockpile for the AHL than a direct feed (other than perhaps some first round people). Maybe they feel one Read a year makes more sense than the draft. Peace, Howie

Well, I suspect these rounds will be G + D. Our organization's development of goalies has been...well, "sub-par." Maybe we begin to break our own traditions. Best, Howie

Greetings: I am not surprised we went after someone with a shutdown mindset. We need it. But I also suspect someone is going in a trade and this is a precursor. What I also suspect it says is that D is going to be dealt with not only by trade but with rebuild over a year or two. Maybe the brass is unwilling to lock up 6 million in a long-term contract. If we see today's moves in the D and G areas, we have a better sense of strategy. Best, Howie